No Man’s Sky – exploring the horizon

Every gamer knows and understands the limits of game worlds. Just to put things in perspective, consider these popular games

Mass Effect:– So many galaxies. And so many worlds in them. Hades Nexus to The Far Rim. Yet you can only explore a few of them. And only a limited area that too.

Assassins Creed:– Altair- World Class Assassin, one man army against the entire Templar Order. Jumps into the river to wash the blood off his clothes and promptly drowns.

Borderlands:– Massive gun towers that punch so many holes in you the minute you cross the border that – in the words of the infamous Chulbul Pandey – “you will be confused from where to breathe and from where to…” well.. long story short. You get diced.

All that didn’t matter did it? Because the confined world within the game kept us entertained enough. But there’s only so much you can do within that confined space, even in a world as large as Skyrim. So, you finish everything that needs doing, switch off the console, bored but wanting a little more. Imagine all the barriers being removed, that there are no missions and quests that guide you and yet limit you. That’s akin to having true freedom in the game world – doing what you want, exploring the unexplored, going beyond that horizon, fail, succeed, learn. It’s this idea that makes No Man’s Sky such a mindbogglingly awesome concept.

Exploration: Unlimited

Being developed by Hello Games, this ambitious project is a sci-fi game that lets players explore and survive in an infinite procedurally generated universe – meaning the planets and solar systems will be built as the game is played, and each one will be different. That’s not all, each and every square inch of the aforementioned planets and solar systems can be explored!! You can fly seamlessly from the surface of one planet to the other. The landscape, the flora, the fauna- the entire ecology, will keep changing as you fly from one world to the other. Sounds insanely cool right??

An epic personal journey

The minute you pick up the controller you start in your own individual planet. The possibilities what you can do next are endless. The stars, the sky, that distant mountain, the moon, the sun – everything that you will be gawking at can be explored. You could find artifacts that may be key to the history of a particular planet. You could even be the first person to discover something amazing, like a new form of life , and choose whether to share it with others or keep it to yourself. In effect – this game will be your own personal adventure.

Survive!

Exploration is not the sole point of this game. As you keep uncovering new planets and the deadly threats that come with them, survival plays a crucial part too. No Man’s Sky website reads – “Every solar system, planet, ocean and cave is filled with danger, and you are vulnerable”. Your suit and spaceship will be fragile. Every encounter – be it fighting pirates, attacking space stations, discovering new forms of life – can be dangerous and challenging. Not preparing well before meeting your foes will lead to you being decimated by them. Whatever you decide in the game, the consequences affects what happens at the other end of the galaxy. In the end, only the fittest will survive.

Screenshots – The Eye Candy

If all that text didn’t make you drool yet, these screenshots definitely will!

Final words

Watch this video, where Hello Games’ founder Sean Murray tells us what to expect from No Man’s Sky.

As you can see, most of what is happening with No Man’s Sky’s development is being kept under the wraps. But Sean Murray has teased that the overall goal will be to travel to the center of the universe and once you reach there “something will happen” that is “worthwhile seeking out”. The game doesn’t end there, according to Murray, but he isn’t revealing what comes next. This much is certain though- Hello Games is truly aiming for the stars with No Man’s Sky!

Though announced only for the PlayStation 4 initially, the game is also coming to other platforms, potentially the Xbox One. Hello Games has not announced any kind of release window for No Man’s Sky yet. For more on the game, visit the website and subscribe.